Federal shutdown cuts hit Orange County

Oct. 1, 2013

Updated Oct. 2, 2013 3:22 p.m.

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Blue Jay Campground is occupied by only wildlife Tuesday after locked gates left the grounds inaccessible to campers, including David Witt of San Dimas. Witt said he's been visiting Blue Jay for about 30 years and was looking to spend his first day as a retired fireman camping. "I'll camp under that tree if I have to," Witt said. He said he will find a campsite with no gate. ANGELA PIAZZA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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The Social Security Administration office in Anaheim is open but has limited services available after the federal government partial shutdown Tuesday. KEN STEINHARDT, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Falcon Group Campground is occupied by only wildlife on Tuesday after locked gates left the grounds inaccessible to campers. ANGELA PIAZZA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Blue Jay Campground is occupied by only wildlife Tuesday after locked gates left the grounds inaccessible to campers, including David Witt of San Dimas. Witt said he's been visiting Blue Jay for about 30 years and was looking to spend his first day as a retired fireman camping. "I'll camp under that tree if I have to," Witt said. He said he will find a campsite with no gate.ANGELA PIAZZA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

The federal shutdown is rippling through Orange County, although deeper effects could be felt if it continues more than a week or two. Here are the major operations in and near the county that rely on federal funding. Unless otherwise noted, the information was compiled from federal, state and local officials and websites.

MILITARY BASES

At Camp Pendleton, 1,163 civilian workers have been furloughed and the base's three commissaries will be closed beginning Wednesday. Exempted were civilian police, fire and emergency medical personnel, as well as civilians who work on firing ranges and support training and air operations. The Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton remains open.

About 40 percent of the California National Guard is on leave, though emergency response and essential tasks will continue at the Los Alamitos base.

Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station, which supplies ordnance to the Navy, has been deemed essential to national security, so only about 25 percent of the base's 530 civilian staff is being furloughed.

AIRPORTS

It is business as usual with air-traffic control, security screening and customs workers all staying on the job. The FAA also will continue to pay contract controllers at Fullerton Municipal Airport.

HOMELAND SECURITY

Major services and programs – including border patrol and port security – will continue. Of the department's 231,000 employees nationwide, nearly 200,000 will stay on the job. Businesses will not be able to access E-verify, the program that allows employers to determine whether prospective employees are legal residents.

IRS

Oct. 15 is the filing deadline for 2012 tax extensions. You must still file your tax return and payments due. The IRS will process returns but will not issue refunds during the shutdown.

SOCIAL WELFARE

No disruption is expected in October to the benefits and payments of Social Security, welfare or food stamps, known as CalFresh in California. Services at local offices may be reduced, and there may be further effects if the shutdown is lengthy.

County officials didn't have specifics Tuesday on what the effect will be on the federally funded Elderly Nutrition Program, which serves 1.3 million meals in the county annually. At least one nonprofit that provides meals to senior citizens in South Orange County – Age Well Senior Services – expects hardship if the shutdown lasts more than two weeks.

The federal contingency plan calls on states to backfill for another grant-funded program, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children. States aren't likely to be able to maintain WIC operations for more than a week or two, and there may be some contingency funds to help the states. But “even this funding would not fully mitigate a shortfall for the entire month of October,” the USDA said.

For now, WIC clinics in Orange County, which serve more than 100,000 annually, are operating as usual.

UNEMPLOYMENT

The state Employment Development Department estimates it has enough funds to continue as usual for a month, with unemployment payments continuing unabated. The county's Workforce Investment Board has adequate funding to continue for two to three months.

EDUCATION

K-12 administrators didn't anticipate immediate impacts. Santa Ana Unified, the county's largest district, has money to continue its free and reduced-price meal program. Orange County Head Start programs are funded through June.

Federal financial aid to students is not expected to be affected. But research-intensive universities, including UC Irvine, are bracing for delays to federal grants.

HOUSING

Of the 8,700 employees nationwide at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, 349 have been kept on the job. Only a few services continue, including housing and emergency services for the homeless and those who have AIDS. Rental assistance is expected to continue at least through October.

CLEVELAND NATIONAL FOREST

Federal firefighters, law enforcement officers and other emergency workers charged with responding to disasters in the forest remain on the job, as do some researchers who would lose findings if studies were interrupted.

But workers at Trabuco Ranger District who maintain local campgrounds and picnic areas will be furloughed within seven days. The following are closed: Blue Jay, El Cariso, Falcon and Wildomar campgrounds; El Cariso South Picnic Area; Wildomar Staging Area; and the California Wildland Firefighter Memorial. San Juan Loop, Hot Springs and Tenaja trailheads remain open, but restrooms and water wells are closed.

ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS

The corps will continue to operate, as many of its projects are paid for by entities outside the federal government.

FISH AND WILDLIFE

Some 7,750 employees have been furloughed in the region. Exempt are about 1,300 law enforcement officers to protect property, and a skeleton staff to care for fish and wildlife at national wildlife refuges and hatcheries. The Seal Beach Wildlife Refuge, along with California's other 38 national refuges, are closed to the public during the shutdown.

FEDERAL COURTS

Reserves are expected to help the U.S. District Court in Santa Ana run as usual for at least two weeks. After that, there could be delays in hearings, and across-the-board reductions in bankruptcy court.

SBA

The Small Business Administration has halted all of its loan programs except one that provides financing to rebuild and repair disaster-caused damage.

VETERANS AFFAIRS

At the VA Long Beach Healthcare System, existing clients whose paperwork is in order can continue to receive most treatments, benefits and payments, but new clients who need paperwork from outside agencies, particularly homeless veterans, may face delays in processing. That's because the national archives housing veterans’ service records is shut down. According to the Associated Press, the Board of Veterans Appeals will stop issuing rulings, meaning some disability claims will take longer to process.

COUNTY GOVERNMENT

The Sheriff's Department is bracing for a cut of as much as $1.4 million in federal funds, Child Welfare Services as much as $100,000, and Family Resources Centers as much as $112,000, with ongoing sequester negotiations playing a key role in those budgeting decisions.

OTHER AGENCIES

The shutdown will not affect Medi-Cal or Medicare payments. The Affordable Care Act is also unaffected.

The Nixon Presidential Library & Museum is closed and about 33 employees of the National Archives and Records Administration based in Yorba Linda have been furloughed.

Field offices for the FBI are unaffected.

The U.S. Labor Department declined to specify any effect on its enforcement and inspection activities.

Some furloughs occurred at the National Weather Service, but forecast offices remain staffed. At the San Diego office, which covers Orange County, all employees were considered essential and remained on the job but can only work on forecasts and warnings until government returns to normal.

The State Department will continue to process passports and visas. Critical assistance to U.S. citizens overseas also will continue.

The Orange County Transportation Authority does not anticipate any cuts if the shutdown is brief.

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